The musician said that when he entered show business in the late 1990s, he wouldn't be in the closet.

"I made the conscious decision when I started recording to be an out artist," he said. "I couldn’t be who I am if I didn't do that. It’s an aspect of me like my eyes are blue. It’s just one part of me, but to deny that part would not have been a good choice."

Ockert said that growing up in Lincoln, a small city about three hours north of London, he had no out gay role models in the pop recording industry.

"You kind of felt it, like Freddie Mercury of Queen, that internal radar thing," he said. "George Michael. Those artists weren’t out at the very beginning. If they had they might have given hope to the kids. You’re not a complete artist if you're not completely open about yourself."

He believes "we are moving into a much more integrated society."

"Music is universal. We're all human and it affects us the same way. I write about experiences I've had and stories I've been involved in," he said. "I don’t want to be separatist: that’s gay, that’s straight.

Ockert avoids using pronouns when he writes songs.

"I want the music to be universal," he said. "I want the lyrics to be universal so that anyone can sing them."